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G. E. HAIGHT. DEVICE FOR CONTROLLING TORPEDO BOATS. No. 257,694. Patented May 9, 1882.

m [Ill/Ill! lllllllfl m I III/I I lIl'O o III UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE E. HAIGHT, oE HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR or ONE-HALF TO WILLIAM E. WINSOR, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

DEVICE FOR CONTROLLING TORPEDO-BOATS.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters PatentNo. 257,694, dated May 9, 1882.

Application filed September 7, 1881. (X model.)

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, GEORGE E. HAIGHT, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Hartford, inthc county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and.

useful Improvementsin Devices for Controlling Torpedo-Boats; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable othm ers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being bad to the accompanying drawing, and to theletters or figures of reference marked thereon, which forms a part of this specification. l 5 This invention relates to valves for controlling the operative parts of self-propelled torpedo-boats and methods of actuating the same. It has for its object the construction of such valves and manner of operating them, whereby the liability of their freezing, due to the rapid expansion of the gas, eith'erin liquid or gaseous form, (and which is employed as the motive force,) will be entirely obviated.

My invention consists of a storing-reservoir for liquefied gas under pressure, having a condensing-pipe leading from both theupper and the lower end thereof, whereby the liquid and the gas contained in said reservoir may be conducted therefrom separately and utilized jointly in athrottle-valvc apparatus of a gas-engine.

My invention also consists in a reservoir of the above description in combination with a throttle-valve apparatus of a gas-engine in such manner that the pressure of the gas in the reservoir may be exerted to open and close a. valve controlling the supply of liquid in the same.

My invention further consists in a device comprising essentially a valve for controlling the liqnid-supply, a cylinder having a valve (operated by electromagnetic energy or other suitable power) with its ports in communion. tion with the gas in the reservoir and withthe cylinder, and connection with the piston-head of said cylinder and the valve for controlling the liquid-supply, whereby the pressure of gas within the reservoir may he used to shift the liquid-controlling valve.

The drawing represents a. longitudinal section of a portion of a torpedo-boat, showing a portion of therescrvoir, and my improved construction and arrangement'of the throttlevalve apparatus, and also the expansion-pipes.

A represents the reservoir or flash for storing, under pressure, carbonic-acid, nitrous-oxide, or similar liquefied gas.

B is a cock in the siphon-pipe b, which leads from the liquid in the reservoir A and conneets with the coiled pipes H. v

D is a valve in the siphon b, which, when open, permits the liquid from the reservoir to pass into the expansion-coils H.

E is acylinder, by means'ot which the valve D is operated.

E is a slide-valvmby means of which gas from the upper portion of thereservoir maybe admitted to the cylinder E through pipe 0. This slide-valve is opened or closed by means of an electro-magnet, as at G, in the usual manner in the Lay torpedo boats.

The cock B is normally open. \Ve will suppose the slide-valve F to be closed. The pressure of gas in the reservoir drives the liquid up through pipe I) as far as the valve D, but as there is no great expansion the liquid is not liable to freeze. To start the boat or engine, the valve F is then opened, which permits the gas from above the liquid in the reservoir to pass through pipe 0 into cylinder E, and by means of piston e and pis- 8o ton-rod c the valve D is forced open. The liquid in the reservoir will now be forced through pipe 1) into pipe H, which may be coiled in any suitable way, and is in contact with the sea-water either by the admission of 8 the latter into a compartment of the boat or by coiling the pipe outside the boat, or other appropriate means may be provided for imparting heat to theexpa-nsion-pipes. Expansion of the gas takes placein thispipe H, thcheat nec- 9o essary to prevent freezing being supplied by the sea-water or other means, and the gas passes on to .the engine, which I have not thought it necessary to show in the drawing.

It will he observed that the gas drawn from 5 the reservoir at any one time is only the small quantity necessary to move the piston incylinder E to one end or the other ofsaid cylinder.

As the valve F is shifted by the maguetit permits this small quantity to escape through an I exhaust-port, e The gas to drive the engine claim is- 1. In a valve apparatus for torpedo-boats, a

expands from the liquid in the coiled pipe H, away from the main body of the liquid in the reservoir. Consequently there islittle tendency of the latter to freeze. This construction and arrangement of the valvular apparatus I have found a practical one. The magnet G has but to move slide-valve F, which, is not likely to freeze in place. Thewhole gas-pressure in the reservoir can be thrown upon piston e, so as to open valve D, which leads to the engine, thus giving great power for such operation.

It will be obvious that theapplication of my invention may not be limited to that of a torpedo-boat, and I wish it so understood.

The valve devices are applicable to almost all forms of gas-engines where there is a liability of the liquid or gas, through rapid, expansion, to congeal in the engine-suppl pipe.

HaVing described my invention. whatl reservoir containing liquefied gas under pressure, having apipe leading from the liquid and a pipe leading from the gas therein, substantially as described,and forthepurpose set forth.

2. Areservoircontainingliquetied gas under pressure, having a pipeleadingfrom the/liquid and a pipe leading from' the gas therein, in combination with a valve apparatus, substantially as described, whereby the pressure from the gas contained in the Ie'servoiris applied to shift the liquid-controlling valve.

3. In combination with a valve apparatus for torpedo-boats, the reservoir A, having the pipe 0 in communicationwith the top and pipe '1) in communication with the bottom thereof,

substantially as and for the purpose described.

4. A reservoir containing liquefied gas under pressure, having a pipe leading from the liquid therein to and in combination with an expansion chamber or pipe, the passage thereto being controlled by a 'valve, and said reservoir having another pipe leading from the gas therein to valve apparatus, substantially as described, whereby the pressure of gas contained in the reservoir is used'to shift the said liquid-controlling valve, for the purposes described. I

5. In a valve apparatus for torpedo-boats, the combination of cylinder E, slide-valve F, magnet G, piston e, piston-rod e, and valve D, substantially as described.

6. The combination, with the gas-reservoir, of a pipe, 0, leading from the gas in the reservoir to cylinder E, and pipe b, leading from the liquid in the reservoir to the expansion-pipes, but closed or opened by valve D, which is operated by the piston in cylinder E, substantially as described.

7. The combination of reservoirA, gas-pipe c, and liquid-pipe b, valve It, operated by map,- net-cylinder E, valve D, operated as described, and expansion-pipes leading to the engine, substantially as shown and described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE E. H AIGHT.

Witnesses:

IRA B. SMITH, THOMAS McMANUs. 

